WEST CHESTER, Pa.- The West Chester University baseball team (35-16) finds itself in familiar territory heading into play on Friday, in need of a win to keep its 2025 season going for at least one more day. Due to inclement weather in the forecast, first pitch is scheduled for 3 p.m. from Serpico Stadium.
West Chester found itself in this exact position a year ago and fell to IUP, although the Golden Rams were one of the best in Division II in this scenario during their historic run in 2022, going 6-1 in elimination games as head coach
Mike LaRosa guided his charges to the National Semifinals in Cary, North Carolina.
Fan Information
Tickets to the NCAA Atlantic Regional Tournament will be $10 per day for adults and $5 per day for students (K-12) and senior citizens. No passes or comp lists will be honored. All ticket sales will be on-site and will be CASH ONLY.
Fans unable to make the trip can follow all the action via
live stats and
video. West Chester University Athletics has also launched a Tournament Central Page, which will feature all the latest scores and statistics from the regional, along with a host of other important fan information. That page can be accessed
here.
Tournament History.
The 2012 and 2017 NCAA Division II Baseball National Champions, the Golden Rams return to the NCAA Tournament for the eighth time in nine years and the 20
th year overall. West Chester boasts a record of 49-39 (.573) in the NCAA Tournament, following a 0-2 showing a year ago with losses to Charleston (W.V.) and Indiana (Pa.). West Chester is hosting the Atlantic Regional Tournament for the fourth time since 2019 and the third time in the last four years, having also hosted the opening weekend in 2022 and 2024. The 2025 season marks the first time that West Chester has hosted the NCAA Atlantic Regional Tournament as the second seed, as the Golden Rams secured the top seed in each of the previous three instances.
LaRosa is no stranger to the NCAA Tournament, as he makes his fourth appearance in five years at the helm of the Golden Rams, showing a record of 8-9 in NCAA Tournament games. Notably, he achieved a 7-4 record in 2022, when the Golden Rams made their run to the Division II National Finals in Cary, North Carolina.
West Chester remains in search of its first NCAA Tournament victory since May 2023, when the Golden Rams defeated Charleston (W.V.) in the first game of that Regional Tournament.
How They Got Here
Fairmont State 11 WCU 4 Box Score Recap
West Chester found itself behind 5-0 heading into the home half of the fifth and was unable to dig out of this deficit, despite having runners on throughout the evening, as Fairmont State staved off elimination with an 11-4 victory over the Golden Rams. Freshmen
Caleb Strawhecker and
Patrick Gozdan each turned in two-hit days, but it was not enough to help the Golden Rams overcome a resilient Fairmont State squad.
Ryan DeHaven (Perkasie, Pa./Pennridge) got the start and took the loss, falling to 3-2 on the year after allowing three runs on four hits and two walks while striking out three in four innings of work. DeHaven was one of six pitchers used by West Chester on Thursday afternoon as the Golden Rams used four different arms in the eighth inning alone. Connor Tingler (3-4) earned the season-extending win for Fairmont State, pitching four strong innings in relief, allowing just four runs on three hits and four walks, working his way in and out of trouble throughout his outing. Dylan Gongola got the start and allowed just two hits and a walk while striking out two in three scoreless innings, while Mac Schnur finished the game with two scoreless innings in relief.
ESU 11 Fairmont State 2 Box Score Recap
Connor Reilly had a career day, going 5-for-5 with two doubles, two runs scored, and three RBI, marking the first time since 2017 that a Warrior had five hits in a game to lead ESU to a dominant 11-2 victory. ESU scored a run each in the second, third, and fourth innings before exploding for four in the sixth, another in the seventh, and three more in the eighth, scoring 11 runs on 13 hits, four walks, and four hit batters. Ryan Dewees got the start and pitched the first 4.2 innings, allowing one run on five hits and a walk, while striking out three. Jake Albert earned the win in relief, allowing just one run on two hits while striking out a pair in 2.1 innings of work.
Six or More Please
West Chester is 16-4 when scoring six or more runs and just 9-12 when scoring five or fewer. The Golden Rams are also 30-1 when leading after four and 31-1 when ahead after six, while showing a record of 3-10 when trailing after four and 2-14 when behind through six innings of play. One of the Golden Rams three wins when behind after four innings was a 5-3 win over East Stroudsburg at home in late March, which saw the Golden Rams trail 3-0 heading into the home fifth before exploding for four runs in the fifth to erase the deficit and eventually earn a 4-3 win over the Warriors.
Score Early
West Chester is 17-4 when scoring in the first inning and 24-5 when scoring first. The Golden Rams, on the other hand, are just 7-10 when the opponent scores in the first inning and 11-11 when the opponent scores first.
Scouting ESU
Despite being held to just one hit on Thursday, Jack Rothenhausler remains one of the leaders of the Warrior offense, entering play batting .314 on the year with 18 doubles and 10 home runs for a team-best 62 RBI. Dennis Pierce is first on the team in batting average (.369) and home runs (16), while also ranking second in runs scored with 47, trailing only Shanley Wall, who is third in batting average at .331 on the year, with seven doubles and five home runs, as part of his 54 hits on the year.
West Chester will likely see Ethan Woods on Friday afternoon, as the junior right-hander has proven himself to be a front-line starter throughout the year, posting a 5-2 record with a 2.06 ERA and a .180 opponent's batting average, along with 32 strikeouts in 43.2 innings of work.
What Happens If?
With a win, West Chester will advance to the final game of the pod on Saturday afternoon to await the winner of a rematch between East Stroudsburg and Fairmont State on Saturday morning.
A loss would conclude the Golden Rams' 2025 season and set up a rematch between ESU and Fairmont State on Saturday, with the Warriors needing just one win to punch their ticket to the Super Regionals.
